Chinese tongue twister, also called “rao4 kou3 ling4” (绕口令）, is a traditional Chinese linguistic game, which is also known as “quick tongue twister”, “tongue tester” or “mouthful game” in different parts of the country.
A tongue twister contains a number of words and phrases with the same initial-consonant or vowel rhyme or words and phrases with similar pronunciations, forming simple and interesting rhymes. A tongue twister is meant to be read out quickly. So, most tongue twisters are quick, rhythmical and full of humor.
The info comes from:
http://kaleidoscope.cultural-china.com/en/11Kaleidoscope1913.html
A complete info about Chinese twister: the origin, development, samples of twisters and references can be found at: http://baike.baidu.com/view/1815.htm
Samples of Chinese twisters:
1.
Forty is forty. Fourteen is fourteen.
四 十 是 四 十 ， 十 四 是 十 四 。
Si4shi2 shi4 si4shi2, shi2si4 shi4 shi2si4.
2.
When you eat grapes, don’t spit the grape skins out. ( The correct pronunciation should be ‘bu2 tu4’, but everyone says it this way.)
吃 葡 萄 不 吐 葡 萄 皮 。
Chi1 pu2tao bu4 tu3 pu2tao pi2.
3.
Eat grapes without spitting the skin of the grape, not eating grapes spit the skin of the grape. ( This is literal. It means that while you are eating grapes, you shouldn’t spit the skin, but when you are finished, then you can spit the skin of the grape. It is a tongue twister, it doesn’t have to make sense!)
吃 葡 萄 不 吐 葡 萄 皮 ,不 吃 葡 萄 倒 吐 葡 萄 皮 。
Chi1 pu2tao bu4 tu3 pu2tao pi2, bu4 chi1 pu2tao dao4 tu3 pu2tao pi2.
4.
ten stone lions
十 尊 石 狮 子
shi2 zun1 shi2 shi1zi
5.
4 is 4, 10 is 10, 14 is 14, 40 is 40, 44 stone lions are dead.
四 是 四 ， 十 是 十 ， 十 四 是 十 四 ， 四 十 是 四 十 ， 四 十 四 只 石 狮 子 是 死 的 。
Si4 shi4 si4, shi2 shi4 shi2, shi2si4 shi4 shi2si4, si4shi2 shi4 si4shi2, si4shi2si4 zhi1 shi2 shi1zi shi4 si3 de.
Listen to those twisters and other twisters, see:
http://hua.umf.maine.edu/Chinese/topics/tongue/douying.html
A collection of tongue twisters with pinyin can be found at:
http://www.uebersetzung.at/twister/zh.htm